Mariah Carey Facing $20 Million Lawsuit Over “All I Want For Christmas Is You”
Mariah Carey is facing a $20 million lawsuit for copyright infringement over her Diamond certified holiday favorite "All I Want For Christmas Is You." songwriter Andy Stone alleges in a motion filed in federal court in New Orleans on Friday (June 3) that Carey and her co-writer Walter Afanasieff constructed a "derivative" variation of his song without his permission. Vince Vance and the Valiants produced a song with the same name but significantly different lyrics and instrumentation in 1989, five years before Carey's chart-topping single dominated the Christmas season.
The lawsuit, obtained by Rolling Stone, says that the two songs have the same name because Stone believes he owns the copyright to future works with that title. The lawsuit claims that "Defendants knew or should have known of Plaintiff's copyright," and that Stone's song had "extensive radio" throughout the 1993 Christmas season — Mariah Carey Facing $20 Million Lawsuit Over “All I Want For Christmas Is You”
Carey's rendition of the song, as well as the music video, has surpassed 1 billion streams and views, and has consistently topped the Billboard Hot 100 Recurrents chart. It also serves as an unofficial start to the festive season, having received Diamond certification in December 2021.
Stone's lawyers claim to have first contacted Carey's lawyers in April 2021, issuing a cease-and-desist order that was allegedly ignored. "The profits, benefits, and advantages received by the Defendants as a result of willful copyright infringement, in addition to punitive penalties and reimbursement for the damages suffered in an amount not less than $20,000,000.00," he claims.
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According to Deadline, there are 177 copyrighted songs with the title "All I Want For Christmas Is You," including several written before Vince Vance and the Valiants' rendition.
Watch Mariah Carey's popular single's video below.